


Not Quite Christmas

by msraven



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Holidays, M/M, Minific, Thanksgiving deserves some love, Tony loves Christmas, chosen family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-29
Updated: 2013-11-29
Packaged: 2018-01-02 23:17:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1062832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/msraven/pseuds/msraven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Someone keeps taking down Tony's Christmas decorations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not Quite Christmas

"NOOOOOOOOO!"

The Avengers and their significant others, having witnessed this same scene twice before, don't bother looking up at Tony's distraught wail.

"No, no, no, no, no," the billionaire rants, his voice carrying clearly into the kitchen where he continues to go ignored.

After another minute, Pepper heaves a sigh (likely questioning her life choices) and walks out into the common living room.

"Tony..."

"No, Pepper, no. Don't try and placate me. This is wrong and impossible and wrong. That tree was twice the size of the first one!"

Tony has made three attempts to decorate for Christmas since Halloween, all with the same result. The decorators come in, fill the Tower's common areas with a myriad of festive decorations, and everything disappears by the next morning.

Tony, being Tony, refused to just ask who had taken down the decorations and his (not very subtle) attempts to determine the identity of the mystery grinch had led nowhere. The only real clue he'd gotten was from Maria Hill who had acted like disappearing Christmas decorations were an expected occurrence and assured him that everything always came back.

"Tony, calm down," Pepper says as soothingly as she can manage. "You need to stop making such a big deal about the decorations."

"But it is a big deal," Tony protests. "Don't you see that they're all in on it? It may have started out as just a single agent grinch, but there is no way one person could have taken all of that down last night. They've even corrupted Jarvis! He won't show me the video feeds and refuses to play me Christmas music. My own AI has turned against me!"

"Don't you think you're being a tad over-dramatic about all of this?"

"No! This is unacceptable. I will not live with a grinch or a group of grinches under my roof. They're going to tell me who started all of this or else I'll... I'll... uh... throw them all out. See how they like being tossed out like the decorations."

"You will do no such thing," Pepper cuts in and the steel in her voice makes Tony's arguments die in his throat. "The Avengers are our friends and it's Thanksgiving. We are going to have a nice, civil dinner with no mention of the missing decorations. If you insist, we will sit down with everyone in the morning and have a calm discussion of how we would all like to celebrate and decorate the Tower for Christmas or Hanukkah or whatever holiday they choose to partake in. You're the one that insisted everyone live here and you don't get to throw them out the first time they disagree with you. Understood?"

Tony looks through the doorway into the kitchen where everyone is chipping in to fix Thanksgiving dinner. He can't keep from smiling as he sees how much everyone seems to be enjoying themselves. Tony really has learned to love having the team living in the Tower, despite some early missteps. It feels a lot like having a family and he should know better than most that family takes patience.

"Okay. You're right. You're always right," Tony concedes. "It can wait. Let's enjoy Thanksgiving."

"Thank you, Tony." Pepper reaches up to give him a kiss on the cheek before taking his arm and pulling him into the kitchen to join the others.

With the chaos of getting Thanksgiving dinner on the table and sitting through the meal itself, Tony forgets all about the Christmas decorations. The last thing he's expecting, is to wake up the next morning to find that all of the decorations have been miraculously put back. Not all, of course, because the three sets of decorations (each iteration escalating in size and garishness) he'd ordered would have been enough to cover several city blocks. Most of the first batch has been returned overnight with several added touches that make it feel more like home instead of a magazine catalog -- there are mis-matched stockings hanging on the mantle, new ornaments on the trees (all three have been placed around the common floor), and a nativity scene sitting next to a menorah on one table.

Tony is struck speechless at the sight and is still no closer to figuring out who had taken the decorations in the first place. All the others, including Pepper, act like there is nothing amiss. Tony looks around at the festive display and his friends (his family) sitting relaxed amongst the decorations, and lets it go.

It's not until later that afternoon when he learns that someone has re-appropriated the extra decorations into giant wreaths and hung them on the outside of the Tower, that all the pieces slot into place for Tony. He knows of only one person who would scale the shear sides of the building for fun.

Tony finds Clint and Phil snuggled on the couch watching a 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'.

"Why?" Tony asks. "You're not a grinch."

"No, I'm not," Clint answers after pausing the cartoon. "I love Christmas, but I like Thanksgiving too. It's a day when families gather together and remember everything they're thankful for. It's a good holiday and it doesn't deserve to be overshadowed just because people are so eager for Christmas that they forget to take the time to appreciate what they already have. I, for one, have a lot to be thankful for... especially this year."

Clint leans a little closer to Phil and Phil turns his head to give his husband a tender kiss on his temple. "We all have a lot to be thankful for."

"Why didn't you just tell me to wait?" Tony can't help wondering.

"Would you have listened?"

"Probably not," Tony answers honestly. 

"Exactly," Clint nods and then grins as he looks up toward the ceiling. "Hey Jarvis, buddy? How about some music? I'm feeling festive."

"Of course, Agent Barton."

Tony sputters as a familiar tune begins to play over the speakers.

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas..."

_fin_


End file.
